Firing on All Burners: Juice Monkeys Thrive in the Heat of Service

Continued from Part 5: Steve Beckta Restaurant Anne DesBrisay was also happy to broadcast her enthusiasm—though she privately admitted later that given all the hype that had attended its opening, she had been nervous reviewing the restaurant. She was relieved though to find that it was indeed “a clear cut above, in all kinds of ways, but mostly in its service department.” “Beckta can only do good for this town in terms of raising the bar on service standards,” says Ottawa Citizen restaurant critic Anne DesBrisay. “The trend toward chef-owned restaurants is growing (yipee), but it means the chef’s in […]

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Sommelier to Restaurant Owner: Steve Beckta Keeps the Fire

Continued from Part 6: Steve Beckta Restaurant When I step back through the wall of heat into the kitchen, Quinn is telling Vardy: “They loved the béarnaise—they ordered the steak just for the sauce. But they thought the steak itself was a little salty.” “Tell ‘em to go to hell,” says Vardy smiling. In fact, Vardy and all the staff take customer feedback seriously. They’ve adapted a number of dishes because of such comments, and made other changes too. For instance, the tasting menu, rather than just listing the food and wine, now explains why certain wines were paired with […]

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